Analysis Of No-No Boy By John Okada

John Okada’s novel, No-No Boy examines the legacies of Japanese internment on the Japanese community through the viewpoints of many characters. Three of those characters, Itchiro Yamada, Kenji Kanno, and Mrs. Yamada, Itchiro’s mother, each possess different views on the impacts of internment on the their lives, as each played a different role. Itchiro was a no-no boy, Kenji was a yes-yes boy, and Mrs. Yamada was an interned Japanese woman.

Itchiro Yamada, the protagonist of the novel, was a no-no boy, something referring to two questions on a loyalty questionnaire Japanese Americans had to answer, one of which asked if they would serve America in the military and the other asking if they would denounce the Japanese emperor and pledge their

loyalty to America. This loyalty questionnaire was given to Japanese Americans already interned, basically insulting them. That being said, one must question whether or not the questionnaire and those two questions were necessary to prove the loyalty of the Japanese-Americans interned to America. What this means is that the questionnaire that tested the loyalty of those in an internment camp seems redundant because of the very fact that it was given to those interned. Internment destroyed Japanese-American lives because those people were required to pack up and relocated with a bare minimum amount of time, and this ruined businesses and communities. Because internment was limited to Japanese American, and over 120,000 Japanese Americans were interned, a loyalty questionnaire was not needed to prove loyalty, as these people picked up and moved into a camp for the simple reason that the American government required it simply because they were Japanese American.
Itchiro’s dilemma of being a no-no boy is something intertwined with these questions of loyalty and serving the US military. As a no-no boy, Itchiro spent two years in prison for his answers on the questionnaire because his loyalty to America was questioned. However, Itchiro’s reason for not joining the army is complicated, as he lists reasons of other no-no boys, ranging from Japan being their home country and their inability to attack their own, as their families could be fighting against them to uncomfortable clothes that would cause them to kill Americans, and concludes that, “My reason was all the reasons put together. I did not go because I was weak and could not do what I should have done.” (34) That being said, Itchiro blames his weakness on being a no-no boy, and one must question his perception of reality at this point in time. His weakness is something Itchiro will allude to many times during the novel, as he feels that his decision of being a no-no boy has resulted in him losing his life, so to speak. However, the question then becomes what made Itchiro weak. Was it his mother, his own feelings, or the resentment that came from being interned? The resentment that stemmed from internment is something to take note of, once again, because of the loyalty Japanese Americans exhibited, in their acceptance of being interned, rather than leaving to go back to Japan. When thinking of no-no boys, one must also think of yes-yes boys, who actually fought in the war, an example being Kenji Kanno, or the parents of these youths, i.e. Mrs. Yamada.
Internment resulted in split Japanese American communities. While some of the communities supported no-no boys in their decision to sit out of the war, other looked upon those with shame. This deeply rooted ostracism of no-no boys while some agreed with the decisions made is a psychological legacy of internment. While Kenji looks upon this hypocritical racism as something that is hurting the Japanese-American community, Itchiro looks upon it as something he deserves for his shaming the community. However, Mrs. Yamada has an entirely different view. She deals with the racism in stride and argues that Itchiro’s status as a no-no boy only solidifies his ties to Japan and proves his Japanese-ness. Because her interactions with those outside of her immediate family are a few, readers aren’t able to view her experiences with racism. However, her interaction with Taro is something that speaks to her complete faith in Japan and the fact her family disintegrates because their beliefs in or against Japan. When Taro announces that he is going to join the army, on his eighteenth birthday, the earliest age that one can join the army, she doesn’t care, and instead announces that they ran out of nickels. Her total avoidance of the fact that her son had just announced his departure is another relation to racism, when readers think back to her conversation with the Kumasakas, in which she announced that they were dead because their son joined the American army and died in service. With that logic, one can conclude that she considers herself and her family dead as a result of Taro’s defection.
Itchiro’s mother, Mrs. Yamada, is someone that has influenced Itchiro’s decision of being a no-no boy. Readers are able to get a sense of her mental health during a conversation she has with the parents of a dead soldier that fought for America, the Kumasakas. She tells Itchiro that, “No, the mother. It is she who is dead because she did not conduct herself as Japanese, and no longer being Japanese, she is dead.” (41) Her reasoning is that a Japanese woman must teach her children that their loyalty is to Japan. By fighting in the war and dying, Mrs. Kumasaka’s son, Bob, has lost his Japanese heritage and deserved his death because of the disloyalty to the Japanese emperor. That being said, Mrs. Yamada’s denial of the truth of the end of the war is her way of confronting the situation of internment. She denies America’s victory over the Japanese, and copes that way.
The American Dream, or rather the loss of the American Dream, is one of the major themes of No-No Boy.

While Kenji does achieve the American Dream although it comes at a cost, Itchiro has the chance to achieve it, and Mrs. Yamada never achieves it. The American Dream is thought to be the idea of people becoming Americans, with the opportunities associated with the title, as well as the freedom, liberties, and rights attached by the Constitution. Kenji, the yes-yes boy of the novel, does achieve the American Dream. He drives a Cadillac, is a war veteran, and has American-based possessions, including “A medal, a car, a pension, even an education. Just for packing a rifle.” (60). However, he paid for the American Dream with his body and blood, through the form of his leg. Kenji’s leg was injured in the war, and he has had to have it cut. He loses a few inches and a few years of his lives every time he revisits the doctor, and eventually dies from an infection caused by the leg. This is symbolic of the cost of the American Dream, and the impossibility of achieving it if one is a Japanese-America, as it can be representative of Kenji cutting out the Japanese-ness from his body. This is something that ties into Mrs. Yamada’s beliefs as well. Mrs. Yamada never achieves the American Dream. She lived in American and was interned. However, she never got over the abandonment of the country that should have supported her, but instead interned her. As such, she commits suicide by

drowning herself. This is another symbolic image as it portrays her trying to cross the waters to death, as a way to get back home to Japan. Because the novel takes place in Seattle, which is across an ocean from Japan, both connecting and separating Japan from America, death by water is a way of showing her reaching her peace and home. Itchiro, on the other hand, spends the entirety of the novel wallowing in self-pity because he believes he isn’t deserving of the American Dream. This is something showcased through the various job interactions he has when trying to find his future. While Mr. Carrick offers Itchiro a high paying job with benefits, disregarding his no-no boy status, Professor brown, at the University Itchiro used to attend, is racist and doesn’t even consider the fact that Itchiro can attend the university as it was too late. However, Itchiro also encounters Morrison at the Church, who offers him a job, and tells Itchiro “There’s nothing wrong with you.” (220) Morrison is referring to Ithciro’s no-no boy status, and doesn’t denounce him because of it. That being said, as the novel ends, Itchiro seems to be on his way to achieving the American Dream and attempting to overcome the Anti-Japanese racism, another major theme of the novel.
Racism is something readers encounter throughout the novel whether it is racism within the Japanese-American community or racism between Japanese-Americans and other racial communities.

Readers get a sense of how deep the internalized racism runs within the Japanese community by Itchiro’s interaction with Eto, one of his former friends form before internment. Eto feels ashamed of Itchiro’s no-no boy status and spits on him, with the promise that he’ll urinate on him the next time they encounter each other. However, Itchiro’s lasting legacy of internment, his self-loathing rears its’ head at the hatred Eto spews at him, “The hate-churned eyes with the stamp of unrelenting condemnation were his cross and he had driven the nails with his own hands.” (3-4) Itchiro’s comment is one that alludes to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, with the reference to the cross and nails, and he thinks that this is a part of his punishment for being a no-no

boy.
Racism outside of the Japanese American community is something readers also see from Itchiro’s eyes during his exchange with a group of African Americans at the beginning of the novel. Itchiro is walking, and a group of African Americans tells him to go back to Tokyo, and they call him a “Jap”. In return, Itchiro thinks of them as “niggers,” and “negroes.” (6) The disdain that Itchiro faces as a Japanese-American is something they should be relatable to African Americans, as they experienced racism in their history, ranging from slavery to segregation, throughout the world, and yet, they consider Japanese Americans to be unworthy of their respect.
That being said, the internal policing that Itchiro experiences is something to take note of, especially with his interactions at the Chinese Oriental club, where his own brother, Taro lures him out and allows his Japanese friends beat up Itchiro for being a no-no boy and bringing shame upon the Japanese-American community. That being said, Itchiro questions the actions of his brother and finds that he is responsible for the treatment he is receiving from both the Japanese-American community and those outside of it. On the other hand is Kenji, a yes-yes boy, who served in the army during the war. Kenji is referred to as “Just another Jap,” and a “Jap lover,” after he intervenes when Itchiro is being beaten up. (80) This is something to note because of the overall disdain that no-no boys experience, and that even though a yes-yes boy, something looked upon with approval by most of the youth in the Japanese-American community, supported him, it made them less than they should be. The approval that Kenji receives from the Japanese-American community is something that is rivaled by the contempt that Itchiro receives.